Gettin' Connect'd

So, you’re ready to take a group for a test drive. You have arranged your fall schedule so that you have a couple options for group night. You haven’t connected with anyone about being in group together, but you have received your invitation to our Connection Event. But what’s that? As the date approaches, your anxiety increases. “What kind of horror is this nut from California going to put me through next? Wasn’t it bad enough that I had to step WAY outside my comfort zone to agree to 8 small group meetings? What now? Will I be placed on an auction block and go to the highest bidder? This reminds me of when we were choosing teams for kickball when I was a kid. No one wants to be the last one picked! No one wants to be the kid nobody wants on their team!!! I just can’t handle this kind of pressure!”

OK. Relax. Breathe! You’ll be fine. When you arrive at the Connection Event, you will see snacks and people milling about getting to briefly meet each other. Eventually, we will ask everyone to be seated and you will be given a couple ice breaker exercises, what we affectionately call “forced fun.” You’ll have an opportunity to shuffle to another group if you feel that you might die if you have to continue being with the current group for 1 more minute. Then we’ll do another brief exercise. Finally, you’ll determine if you can function as a group for the 8-week series. If you can, you’ll add your name to a paper roster and be told how to move forward as a group. Very likely, you will meet your group coach at that time also. Anyone who feels they simply didn’t find a group that they could tolerate will be placed on another roster for placement elsewhere, probably in an existing group.

Any questions about this process? Any suggestions? Drop me and email at scburghart@lgbc.org.